David Sanchez (born June 17, 1947) is an American civil rights activist, and founding member of the
Brown Berets. In the 1960s and 70s he was heavily involved in the
Chicano
Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement.
In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...
civil rights and political movements.
Background
An accomplished student in high school, in 1966 Sanchez chaired Mayor
Sam Yorty's youth council. However personal experiences with police brutality from the
LAPD
The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...
radicalized his politics and world view.
With other high school students, Sanchez helped found the Young Chicanos for Community Action. With his leadership, the Young Chicanos For Community Action eventually became the Brown Berets.
The Brown Berets advocated for better schools and the fair treatment of Mexican-Americans in Los Angeles.
The organization also worked on
farmworkers
A farmworker, farmhand or agricultural worker is someone employed for labor in agriculture. In labor law, the term "farmworker" is sometimes used more narrowly, applying only to a hired worker involved in agricultural production, including har ...
' rights,
opposition to the Vietnam War
Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War began in 1965 with demonstrations against the escalating role of the United States in the Vietnam War, United States in the war. Over the next several years, these demonstrations grew ...
, and
organizing against
police brutality
Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or Public order policing, a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, b ...
.
Known as the "Prime Minister," Sanchez played a key role in the organization of the
Chicano Moratorium and the
East L.A. walkouts.
In 1969, Sanchez and the Brown Berets established the East LA Free Clinic on
Whittier Boulevard.
He was at the
National Chicano Moratorium March
The Chicano Moratorium, formally known as the National Chicano Moratorium Committee Against The Vietnam War, was a movement of Chicano anti-war activists that built a broad-based coalition of Mexican-American groups to organize opposition to the Vi ...
on August 29, 1970, and was friends with journalist
Ruben Salazar who was killed that day.
In 1972, Sanchez led the
Occupation of Catalina Island, which was meant to draw attention on the continuing struggles of Mexican-Americans in the United States.
After disbanding the Brown Berets, Sanchez went to work for the
Los Angeles County Department of Health Services
Health Services Los Angeles County, officially the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, operates the public hospitals and clinics in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and is the United States' second largest municip ...
, and taught Mexican American Studies at several community colleges in Los Angeles county.
In 2005, Sanchez ran for the
Los Angeles City Council District 14
Los Angeles's 14th City Council district is one of the fifteen districts in the Los Angeles City Council. The district, which has a large Latin Americans, Latin American population, includes the neighborhoods of Boyle Heights, Downtown Los Angele ...
seat, losing to
José Huizar, and in 2012
he ran in the race for
California's 40th congressional district, losing to
Lucille Roybal-Allard
Lucille Elsa Roybal-Allard (born June 12, 1941) is an American politician who served as a United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative from California from 1993 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ...
.
Published works
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References
Further reading
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External links
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David Sanchez presents at the Mexican-Americans Graduate Institute on California Revealed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, David
1947 births
Living people
American community activists
American politicians of Mexican descent
Activists for Hispanic and Latino American civil rights
Politicians from Los Angeles
Candidates in the 2012 United States elections
Candidates in the 2020 United States House of Representatives elections